The comparison of executive functions in obsessive-compulsive disorder and major depressive disorder patients with healthy individuals

The aim of this study was to compare the executive function، including information updating، shifting of attention and inhibition، amongst three groups comprising major depressive-، obsessive-compulsive disorder patients and normal individuals. 20 major depressive patients، 21 obsessive-compulsive patients and 21 normal individuals were selected with convenient sampling method and were matched for their age، gender، and education. Data were collected using N-back، Wiscansin card sorting and color-word Stroop tests. The obtained data were then analyzed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). Our findings revealed no significant difference between the depressed patients، obsessive-compulsive patients and the control groups with regard to inhibition in the subtests of interferences of error and interferences of time. On the other hand، there found to be a significant difference between the three groups in terms of shifting of attention in the subtests of perseveration error and number of stages. Despite a significant difference between the three groups in updating of information in the subtests of number of errors due to taking the age covariate into account in ANCOVA، no significant difference was found between the major depression and obsessive compulsive groups in the mean of reaction time.